Monday, June 13th 2016, 10:57 pm
A Tulsa Tough competitor is in the hospital after a driver struck him on his way home from dinner.
The cyclist said he doesn't remember anything from the crash, and can’t believe someone would crash into him on a four-lane road then drive off.
Chad Coccaro is one of the local guys who looks forward to a weekend full of crit racing during Tulsa Tough.
Right now he’s pretty banged up due to a wreck, but it didn’t happen during the races.
"Usually, when you wreck, it's during a race like Tulsa Tough, but I managed to squeeze by all three days just fine and then got hit by a car going home," he said.
Coccaro finished the final stage, Cry Baby Hill, grabbed dinner with his fiancée, Sarah Davis, and they headed home on their bikes around 10:00 Sunday night.
Davis said she remembers looking back to see headlights coming right at them on 15th Street, then, the driver hit Coccaro and drove off.
"It was terrifying, especially because at first he was completely unresponsive, he did not look like he was breathing. I was terrified," Davis said.
Coccaro broke an elbow and several fingers. He also has stitches on his tongue and a banged up face and legs.
He can't believe the driver hit him and drove away.
"It's just a shame, the fact that they hit me and just drove off with no care in the world. I could've been dead on the ground," he said.
Coccaro hopes to be back on his feet soon, with a new bike to finish the race season.
"You can do a lot of damage; I'm a fiancé, I've got parents and I've got friends, I'm a human," he said.
Coccaro is getting visits from his racing buddies and teammates. He's also getting married in a few weeks and hopes to be recovered by then.
Both he and Davis both wore helmets that night.
June 13th, 2016
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